


Children of Earth

by Asphodel_Meadow



Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: Fillory talks about her rulers, Fillory's happy ending, Gen, Royalty, Welters Challenge 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2019-05-29
Packaged: 2020-03-26 16:21:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19009405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Asphodel_Meadow/pseuds/Asphodel_Meadow
Summary: Fillory decides when to let you in and when to lock you out.Week three: Royalty.





	Children of Earth

Fillory was pleased when the gods gave Jane Chatwin the power to meddle with time. However, Fillory never imagined how much more destruction this alternative will bring. Rewind time every occasion they failed. In theory, sounded good. In practice, it was a disaster. The young magicians didn’t remember the past timelines; Fillory and Jane did. (And Henry and Martin).

Not on every intent, the group managed to travel to Fillory, especially not on the first ones. But, with each repetition they were deciphering the puzzle faster. Unfortunately, that didn’t mean they were acting with more precaution. On the other hand, Martin was learning from each success.

Fillory hated when Martin beaten them on her grounds. Knowing it won’t be the last time, that Jane was already turning the clock back.

This was the worst: to feel how their lives wilted. It was an odd sensation. As awful as it sounded, Fillory had never worried about her previous monarchs. She did not care if they were happy, only if they were fit to rule. Between Martin and Jane, Fillory always favored Jane. From a young age, it was clear to Fillory that Jane would do whatever was necessary to help the land. It was a pity the kingdom was not ready to be ruled by a High Queen. She tried to force their hand by closing the door to Martin, but look where that brought her.

Eventually, Martin managed to enter. He drank from the wellspring and with that he went beyond Fillory’s reach. It was funny, how sharing the same source of magic protected him. Sometimes, Fillory wondered if Martin’s lack of concern was inversely proportional to Fillory’s growing one. It was a good theory. The water that Martin drank so avidly to keep his magic (the same magic that kept alive the land) destroyed his shade. Perhaps the less water the wellspring had, the more ‘human’ Fillory was.

But, no, it wasn’t that simply.

If that were true, then Fillory would have felt something when other royal blood was spilled. But she didn’t.

After Martin destroyed his shade and left the throne, Fillory thought that a replacement could help. She brought other Children of Earth to occupy the throne. It was a pointless endeavor. One by one, they went crazy with power. Kings and Queens killed their co-rulers without blinking. It didn’t matter if they were friends, family or lovers. The only that mattered was to be last one standing.

 _The Mad Royals_ , the fillorian labeled them.

Fillory knew this was Martin’s doing, but her people did not. After a while the fillorians grew wary of the foreign that came to claim the crown. They only saw them as violent and blood thirsty. She closed the doors and waited for a change.

Jane brought the change with her clock and his team of magicians. At first, Fillory wasn’t impressed with them. It was a bit difficult to believe those five apprentices would be Martin’s downfall. However, after a while she began to see how they could work together: the traveler, the rightful heir, the volunteer.

At the twentieth intent, Fillory had spent enough time with the group to start caring about them. Just like Jane had taken a special interest in one of the questers, Fillory also was drawn to one magician in particular. Was it the royal blood? Definitely, at least, at the beginning. She always recognized her rulers.

Eliot Waugh. Even without the crown, he exuded authority. And he made Fillory believe that maybe this mismatched group had an opportunity to win.

Fillory was aware that taking the throne wasn’t going to solve their problems. Yet, when Eliot was crowned, she forgot about the danger that lured close. And then, Martin had to appear and ruin everything; making Jane reset time.

There was something funny about the whole reset deal. Jane always did it once Quentin died. It didn’t matter how messed the situation was, if Quentin was alive, then she keep going. During the three first intents, Jane had left time run even after the boy’s death. However, in those timelines, the group shattered giving Martin the advantage. After those failed situations, Jane decided to take Quentin’s death as her sign to begin again.

Jane’s logic was sound. But, that wasn’t the whole story. Fillory knew this, because she was in a similar predicament. Jane had gotten attached to Quentin, just as Fillory did with Eliot. A victory without Quentin alive wouldn’t have felt like a victory to her. And so, she kept resetting time. Unfortunately (or maybe, fortunately, Fillory didn’t want to dwell on this) Eliot and Quentin seemed to die one after the other. Maybe it had to do with the issue of being two sides of a whole. Nevertheless, that meant Jane’s happy ending (most of the time) coincided with Fillory’s own version. It was a pity they never got to achieve it.

Fillory didn’t intervene in Jane’s plans. (Not that she really could). Jane did as she wanted. And sometimes that didn’t make Fillory happy. She had to see her High King being defeated over and over. Sometimes, Eliot didn’t get to actually become a King, but for Fillory the crowning was just a procedure more. With crown or without, Fillory had accepted him as her monarch.

It was until the fortieth loop when Fillory needed to step in. Suddenly, Jane was dead and the group was left at their own devices. This was the last attempt they were ever going to have (even if they didn’t know it). One shot to defeat Martin and save the kingdom. The problem was that Fillory couldn’t exactly interfere. This was their last chance and all that Fillory could do was watch.

And that’s what she did.

For the last time, she saw them arrive full of concerns. She saw Eliot discover his birthright and then she watched him die.

 _Game over_ , she and Quentin thought. Neither of them counted on Alice. But they certainly were glad when she had their backs. And thanks to her they managed to get another opportunity.

If Fillory were able to feel human emotions, she would have been sad that to destroy Martin, Alice became a niffin. But, since Fillory only cared about herself, the pity lasted very little. It only took a threat to her King to change her perception of the young woman.

Quentin saved Eliot and Margo, but he didn’t come out unscratched. Once Quentin was recovered, he practically fled away. His departure bothered Eliot. The High King was worried for her friend and in an attempt to help Margo decided to go looking for Quentin.

That meant Eliot was left alone in Fillory while his friends were on Earth.

This was the opportunity Fillory was waiting for. Now, that Martin was finally gone, she only had to worry about the kingdom. Fillory already accepted that she never cared about the happiness of her monarchs. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that she prioritized the King over the man.

Fillory closed the door for the others. She isolated Eliot from his friends.

She was sure that Eliot could save the realm if he gave himself fully into the task. She could see in Eliot the seed of a good king: his diplomacy and his protective streak. If she only managed that those two aptitudes were solely focused on her, then Eliot would be a great ruler. And that was the reason why Fillory decided to close the door for Eliot’s friends.

The road to transform Eliot into the High King Fillory wanted wasn’t an easy one. Eliot was still waiting for his friends to come back, but there were so many things that needed to be done, that he couldn’t stay in the castle and wallow in his misery.

It took five years for Eliot to accept his new situation. He didn’t give up on his friends. Of course not, the man was stubborn. He still had them in high regard. But he stopped waiting for them. Eliot comprehended that they weren’t coming back. He was tied to Fillory and they, well, there were a lot of reasons why they couldn’t return, right? After all, time ran differently between Earth and Fillory. His friends’ absence didn’t necessarily mean they didn’t want to be by Eliot’s side.

Oh, and if that wasn’t enough there was also Eliot’s son. Honestly, Eliot devoted to the well-being of the kingdom so he would be left off the hook for not spending time with his son. Fatherhood was a sensitive topic, Fillory realized. Fortunately, the little prince understood the weight of the crown perfectly and never resented his father. Fillory was lucky that was the case. A family feud would have ruined her plans.

By the tenth year of Eliot’s reign, Fillory was so proud of him. He improved the lives of the fillorians and in the process he won his subjects’ love and admiration. He had conquered challenge after challenge. Just like Fillory expected from him. She couldn’t be happier.  

And then, during that anniversary, Eliot made an announcement that reminded Fillory why she was right when she secluded him.

The High King stood tall in front of the crowd and proclaimed the beginning of a new age. Since no more Children of Earth had ventured into Fillory, he named his son as his successor; the people cheered. The prince would turn ten soon, and he already was the picture of nobility. If he followed his father’s steps, the land would continue flourishing.

The years passed and Fillory only saw positive results. The only downside was Eliot’s friends. From time to time, she had to strengthen the barriers that keep them away. She didn’t want them to come in and destroy everything that Eliot had built. This was for Eliot’s sake.

Besides, she had time working on her side. One day on Earth was equivalent to one year on Fillory. That meant that by the moment Margo and Quentin realized something was wrong with their connection to Fillory, Eliot was about to become grandfather. He took this role with more ease. Perhaps it was because his granddaughter had big brown eyes just like the two people he had loved dearly on another life.

Fillory liked to think Eliot had lived a good life. However, she also was aware it wasn’t exactly the life he wanted. Eliot didn’t spend his life crying over his lost friends, but he never quite forgot them. Especially Margo and Quentin, those two were engrained in Eliot’s soul.

Why Fillory didn’t let them return, if only to say goodbye?

Eliot had made peace with not seeing his friends again. He took the time difference theory as true. He never listened to those who wanted to discredit the long gone Queen and King. But if Eliot saw Margo and Quentin now, he would realize how derisible his situation truly was. Then Eliot would hate Fillory along with everything she represented. And Fillory didn’t want that.  

So, she kept her barriers up until Eliot died and then some more as precaution. By the time, Fillory opened her doors to them; Eliot’s legacy was established. The dynasty Waugh had ruled for over two centuries. Margo and Quentin didn’t know how much time has passed when they returned. But when they found out, their shock was palpable. They were escorted to the former High King’s burial chamber. There stood a marble statue of Eliot. It was commissioned when the monarch celebrated his 30th birthday. It was different from the Eliot they remembered, but it was definitely him.

Quentin entered to the chamber and walked to the tombstone. His fingers traced Eliot’s name.

High King Eliot had many epithets.

The peace maker, for creating an alliance with Loria.

The beholder, for uncovering the Fairy Realm.

The reformer, for making possible that her granddaughter Margo ruled as High Queen.

And Fillory’s favourite: The founder, for creating the Waugh dynasty.

Eliot had many epithets, but he never forgot the first one; which had been given to him by Quentin. That day, in presence of his friends, Eliot made a vow to himself and, in Fillory’s opinion, he fulfilled that promise.

Carved on stone, were the next words: High King Eliot, the Spectacular.

 


End file.
